The Contemporary Theater Company (CTC) is a 501(c)3 non-profit theater company based in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. Founded by Artistic Director Christopher J. Simpson in 2005, the company presents a range of plays throughout South County with an emphasis on reaching first-time theatergoers. The company presents an annual holiday show at the historic waterfront Towers in Narragansett and produces an annual 24-Hour Play Festival at the South Kingstown High School. The company presents theater, classes and public events at a theater at 327 Main Street in historic downtown Wakefield that opened in July 2012.

History

The Contemporary Theater Company started as an unincorporated group in 2005 known as The Courthouse Summer Theater Company. Its first production was Rumors by Neil Simon in the summer of 2005. The company incorporated on May 30, 2006. The company continued to present shows under the name The Courthouse Theater Company at the Courthouse Center for the Arts until the end of 2007, when the center established an in-house theater group. In 2009, The Courthouse Theater Company renamed itself The Contemporary Theater Company. It has since produced shows including The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) and The Gift of the Magi. In 2012, the company moved to its current location. It purchased an adjacent property to use as a rehearsal space and patio and in 2018 purchased its main theatre space. An additional renovation and expansion followed. In January 2021, associate artistic director Tammy Brown was promoted to artistic director, tasked with developing a five-year plan for the organization and an expanded mission and vision. She resigned in July, 2024.

Past Seasons

2015 season

2014 season

2013 season

2012 season

2011 season

2010 season

2009 season

2008 season

2007 season

2006 season

2005 season

Awards and nominations

"Rhode Island Monthly Editor's Pick" 2012 Arts Revitalization Award Providence Phoenix: The Best of RI 2011 MoreTeeth's Most Teeth Theater Awards May 2010 – May 2011 2011 Motif Magazine Theatre Awards Southern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce's 2011 Chamber Impact Awards Providence Phoenix: The Best of RI 2010 2009 Motif Magazine Theatre Awards

Organization

The CTC is led by an eleven-member board of directors and Artistic Director Christopher J. Simpson. In 2009, Simpson won a fellowship from Princeton University to help grow the company.